Oh come, on. It was good.
So good, in fact, that not a single member of the Lennon CSC left early to go to the pub.
This has never happened before in the twenty years or so I’ve been a member.
It won’t be long before the newspapers blame Celtic for the downturn in pub profits and people losing their jobs.
In Fridays diary, i said it would be either 5-0 or 4-3.
When Celtic went two up, I figured five would be a conservative estimate, as the incisive and fast play from the men in hoops carved opening after opening into the heart of the Hibernian side.
At 4-2, I wondered if Hibs had the heart to pull one more back and make me finally right about something, but it wasn’t to be.
Celtic had simply picked up where they left off against St Johnstone before the international break, and a win over Hearts, who will probably Hibs it in the next two meetings anyway, will put Celtic back at the top of the table, as i said in a previous Diary.
The thing that caught the eye was the flourishing partnership between Tom Rogic and James Forrest, who when both on song are unstoppable.
And it looks like we have found a position for Oddsone Edouard where he can make a significant contribution. He looks much more comfortable behind a number nine-even if its Ryan Christie-and reads the break of the ball so much better when he’s facing goal and its in front of him.
Celtic are still improving, almost on an hourly basis , after a troubled start.
But, now that the problems are all sorted, we can, and will, crack on with the march towards eight in a row, and possibly a third successive treble.
As Brendan put it…
“In the summer, we wanted to go into another gear as a club and we didn’t. We stood still. Slowly from then we’ve been starting to move and we’ve moved forward and forward each week. And now I sense us getting that fluency and energy back.”
Of course the BBC saw the game differently…
Late scare ? The only late scare I had was that I wouldn’t have time to grab a beer before the tarrier carrier set off down south again.
Oh, and I was propositioned by a young lady on the way out of the ground on the way to that beer.
Three Hibernian fans of the opposite sex-women, for those unsure about what i am-we singing something about the fact-?-that if it wasn’t for the high bees you’d be huns, a kind of bizarre outlook on life as my very attractiveness would dismiss any possibility that I could be a hun, which I pointed out to them.
I think they agreed, as one of them explained she was leaving her husband the next day, and when I asked what time her pal said that I should be round by about a quarter to one, as she would be desperate by then.
Come to think of it, I’m not entirely sure that was a compliment now…
We can now look ahead to the Leipzig match on Thursday, where a result of any kind would be welcome, well, there will be a result, but you know what i mean, and it looks like Scott Brown will be out for that one.
He was replaced on Saturday after less than half an hour, and is clearly not as fit as we would like. And he kept moaning that the other players were passing the ball forwards, instead of sidieways like they’re supposed to, so no wonder he was knackered.
Brown is showing signs of wear and tear, and if we are to get another couple of years out of him, as we would all like, then perhaps we should use him sparingly until he’s fully recovered.
He’s been kicked, punched, stamped on and never once played on it, and his body must be feeling the punishment by now.
The club should let him take his time for this reason, although at least one reporter reckons he is being given the rest while he thinks over an offer from Australia..
You guessed it, its the insightful Keith Jackson of the Traynor Group publication, the Daily Record..
Jackson admits that the Mebourne side interested in Brown don’t even have a licence, and as a result, aren’t even in the league, but that didn’t stop “rangers “, and it won’t stop Jackson from pontificating…
So, yes, for all of those reasons, it does seem a bit premature for Scotland’s champions to start planning for life after Scott Brown.
Certainly, neither Peter Lawwell nor Brendan Rodgers are dismissing the Australian interest as some sort of far-flung fantasy.
Remarkable…the Record calling anything a far flung fantasy….
That both of them have allowed Brown the time and space he needs to await developments down under is a clear sign this ought to be taken seriously.
It’s also indicative of the affection with which Brown is held by his club.
Having led Celtic to the last seven league titles and back-to-back trebles, Brown has earned this level of respect and understanding.
At the age of 33 he may also feel the time has come to listen to his own body, which broke down on him again on Saturday after only 20 minutes of a thrilling 4-2 win over his old club Hibs.
If Brown is being offered a long-term deal in Melbourne, like a three-year contract for example, then it might not be an easy one for him to dismiss out of hand even though he is now within touching distance of immortality in Glasgow’s east end.
Sure, its going to be Browns last contract, and he would be a fool not to consider anything else that came onto the table, but its very unlikely he’ll go anywhere.
Jackson himself then tells us why..though he probably didn’t mean to..
Celtic Football Club will make its first foray into motorcycle racing at next month’s Macau Motorcycle Grand Prix, having joined forces with international road race winners Dafabet Devitt Racing.
Both the seven-in-a-row Scottish champions and the multiple Isle of Man TT-winning race team are sponsored by online betting company Dafabet, and will use the event to promote the Glasgow club in the Far East where they already have a huge following.
Brainchild of Dafabet Devitt Racing’s Danny Horne, the team’s Kawasaki ZX-10RR Superbike, set to be piloted by the North East rider Dominic Herbertson, will feature a unique and striking livery with their traditional racing colours being replaced by the famous green and white of Celtic FC.
The livery will include the club’s famous logo and is sure to gain huge interest from both the thousands of race fans at the circuit and with the millions of worldwide television viewers.
The Celtic bike has been built initially to be used in Macau Grand Prix next month, but will also be used in subsequent races throughout the season.
Team owners Roy and Ben Constable have always had an immense passion for bikes, and this passion resulted in them fulfilling a dream in 2012 when they formed their own race team. They enlisted the considerable talents of Dean Harrison, who went on to give them their first Isle of Man TT victory in 2014 as well as becoming the first newcomer to record a lap of 130mph+ at the Ulster Grand Prix.
Harrison left the team in 2015 and was replaced by Ivan Lintin, who ensured the success story continued with successive victories in the Lightweight class at the Isle of Man TT Races in 2015 and 2016, thus making it three-in-a-row for the team. He also became the first rider to lap the world famous 37.73-mile Mountain Course at more than 120mph on a Lightweight machine.
Head of Marketing for Devitt Insurance Tom Warsop said: “We’re thrilled to be part of the project and think the Celtic Bike looks fantastic. The team are always looking for ways to innovate and work with amazing brands, which in turn, helps to promote Devitt as a leading bike insurance provider.”
John Cruces, Head of Sponsorship and Marketing for Dafabet, said: “We’re delighted to bring together two of our partners with this project, which we believe can only benefit all concerned.
The bike looks absolutely stunning and is genuinely groundbreaking. We look forward to seeing the bike in action and wish Dominic the very best of luck.”
Gordon Kaye, Head of Business Development at Celtic, added: “Dafabet have once again shown what can be achieved through an innovative approach to sports partnerships. We are delighted that the club crest will have pride of place on the Dafabet Devitt bike and we look forward to supporting Dominic and his crew as they sport the Hoops and Celtic training wear for the remainder of the race season.”
Macau…is that where all the casinos are ?
We hear that our own owner has more than a vested interest in at least one of those places….then again, he has his fingers in quite a lot of pies.
Which reminds me, there’s plenty of room in the pies at Celtic Park to put your fingers in.
I had to have four on Saturday to get anywhere near my daily protein levels.
Elsewhere, and Kevin McKenna has written an excellent piece, which takes satire to a new level, about how catholics have been sneakily undermining society. Its outstanding and well worth a look..
Meanwhile, on the other side of the city, their support has shown support for one of their own, who is currently serving time at one of her majestys hotels..
I was intrigued, perhaps they too, had been badly treated by the justice system, perhaps they too, had a hero to look up to..
I should have known better.
Perhaps there’s some truth in the story that all the decent Rangers fans have stopped going to games, well, a fair chunk of them at least, and the ones there now are the ones that would have had their arses booted by the decent ones back in the day…
Though it seems there is still a market for it…
Rangers legend Ian Durrant in bigotry row after ‘f**k the Pope’ comment caught on video at football dinner
The Nine-in-a-Row hero made the sectarian remark at an event in Bothwell in Lanarkshire.
Actually, that bit should read..
The nine in a row hero made the remark at a sectarian event in Bothwell in Lanarkshire…
Ex-Rangers star Ian Durrant is at the centre of a bigotry storm after footage of him emerged saying “F*** the Pope”.
The 51-year-old made the outburst into a microphone during a packed football legends dinner, which was also attended by former Ibrox players Barry Ferguson and Lee McCulloch.
The trio were entertaining fans at an event in Bothwell Bridge Hotel, Lanarkshire, earlier this month.
Nine-in-a-row hero Durrant also mentioned former Celtic chairman John Reid just before the slur.
Anti-sectarian campaigners yesterday condemned the former midfielder who is considered a legend by Light Blues fans.
Nil by Mouth director David Scott said: “This is crass behaviour and reflects extremely poorly on the person involved and in 2018 there is no excuse for it.
“That this is someone who is currently in a management position at an SPFL football club also reminds us that sectarianism still blights the game here.”
The dinner was held on October 12 and was organised by Glasgow firm FSG Promotions and Blackpool-based Goldstar Promotions.
Former captain Ferguson, McCulloch and Durrant sat at the top table and talked about their glittering Ibrox careers.
What I cannot figure out is why these players think that they have to use this kind of language to satisfy their audience. If it was an isolated incident, you could put it down to the drink, but it appears to be endemic, and even scripted…
Can you imagine the outcry of one of our “legends ” said “fuck the queen ” at a supporters event ?
And quite a bit of it would come from the audience.
You’d have thought the Rangers supporters in the crowd, the decent ones, would have said something. They’re normally quick off the mark when they’ve been offended…
Oops…Dallas is in fact one of their players…
Then again, perhaps FTP doesn’t offend them…
Oh hang on, I know what happened…Bob Malcolm was signing autographs and Durrant just read it out…
Then again, when we consider the real reason that Yousseff Mulumbu didn’t play on Saturday….
On Saturday, we had this image..
Daniel Arzhani’s Da Down forced to downgrade hotel as he waits for his sons debut
Today… please explain this…
